Page 44 of The Bratva's Hunted Bride
***
I wake in the morning with Talia curled against me, her back warm against my chest, and my arms locked around her.She’s breathing softly. I took her so many times last night that she could barely keep her eyes open when I was done with her. Not that I will ever be done with her.
I lean forward and take a long breath of her scent. She stirs awake, and I wait for her to realize she’s still in my bed.
Instead of being alarmed, she snuggles closer.
My heart pulses faster, and heat spills through my chest.
“Good morning, beautiful,” I whisper.
“Hi,” she replies sleepily, and I can hear that she’s smiling.
This is my dream. Everything I want. And with her compliant in my arms, I don’t want to waste a moment of it. I have to make sure she knows that this isn’t some game to me. That I am her world now.
“I’m taking you out tonight,” I tell her.
“Mm,” she murmurs, rolling to face me. “Where?” she asks, her eyes still dazed and dreamy.
“On a date.” I kiss her lips, and when I lean back to look at her, she’s smiling. As beautiful as ever.
***
That evening, just before sunset, we arrive on the top floor of the tallest building in Miami.
I own the building and the restaurant at the top, which is said to be the most luxurious one in the city, offering views from every table across every corner of the city and stretching far out over the ocean.
Talia is wearing a long gold dress with a slit that runs up her left leg as high as her hip. She can’t be wearing under, and I hadn’t considered just how distracting that would be when I picked the dress for her and left it on her bed with a gold necklace and a diamond pendant, which is now glittering between her breasts. Her hair is pulled up into a messy, yet perfect bun on top of her head, with a few soft loose curls drifting over her shoulders.
She looks like a goddess as she walks ahead of me, following the hostess toward our table. Her hips sway, and the gold fabric moves around her like water.
Talia is smiling, holding a glass of alcohol-free champagne in her beautiful hands. “Why are you doing this for me?” she asks, her eyes narrowed as she looks across the table toward me. Around us, the sky is turning pink and purple as the sun sinks lower toward the horizon, dipping into the ocean.
“Because you are mine, Talia. And I will give you the world.”
She presses her lips together, and I reach around the table, grabbing the edge of her chair and pulling her closer to me. I don’t like it when she’s that far away.
I can’t keep my hands off her.
And the sound of her laughter is like precious jewels, priceless, beautiful, and elegant.
I order for us, so she can just relax and not have to worry about a thing. The restaurant specializes in Japanese cuisine, and I order a wide selection of dishes so that we can try everything.
The waitress brings us a platter, and we discuss which flavors are our favorites as she lets me feed her, enjoying the way her lips wrap around each delicate piece of food.
Talia leans against my side as she watches the sky grow darker. I’m watching her, though, the most beautiful thing in the world.
“Do you like being an uncle?” she asks quietly, lost in her own thoughts.
I cock my head to the side, brushing my hand over her cheek. “Of course, I do. Those little ones mean the world to me. My whole family does,” I answer.
“And…did you ever want children of your own?” Her voice catches slightly when she asks me this, and I realize what she’s getting at.
I move her so that I can look into her eyes. “Talia, the fact that my child is growing inside you, that your body is home to my baby…nothing could make me happier. You have given me the most precious gift. An heir.”
She smiles tightly, and I’m not sure if I’ve answered her question the way she wanted me to. Does she not understand what it means for me to be having a child with her? She is my blood now. She is bound to me for life.
“That’s…”
